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18 flu deaths reported across Massachusetts this season

The day after announcing four Boston residents have died of the flu and more than 700 other people have the virus, the city has declared a state of emergency.

With the declaration, health care centers across the city will be offering free vaccines to anyone who hasn’t yet been immunized.

"This is the worst flu season we’ve seen since 2009, and people should take the threat of flu seriously," Mayor Tom Menino said. "This is not only a health concern, but also an economic concern for families, and I’m urging residents to get vaccinated if they haven’t already. It’s the best thing you can do to protect yourself and your family. If you’re sick, please stay home from work or school."

Menino said the city's four victims were all senior citizens.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health said it has seen 18 flu-related deaths in the state this season, and described cases of the virus as severe.

Kevin Cranston from the Massachusetts Bureau of Infectious Diseases said there was no real concentration in any one part of the state, but the cases they were seeing are severe.

"What we are hearing from clinicians from across the state is that the strains of flu people are presenting with is quite severe," he said. "We are seeing rates of hospitalization certainly higher than the last two years, which is enough to give us all concern about the seriously of the season."

Cranston said most of the deaths have been in older patients.

"We’ve seen 18 deaths reported to us so far this season associated to influenza-like illness overwhelmingly amongst older individuals, which is not atypical," he said.

Anita Barry, the Director of the Infectious Disease Bureau for the Boston Health Department, said so far this year, there has been 10 times as many flu cases reported versus the number of cases recorded for all of last year.

Barry said the flu was blamed for four deaths in Boston since Oct. 1.

Boston's Massachusetts General Hospital said the flu season started early and the number of cases are on the rise. The medical center said its seeing an additional 40 to 80 patients daily with flu-like illness.

"This has strained capacity to its limits. Likewise, many inpatient beds have been closed to isolate influenza patients, and hospital and practice staffing has been stressed by illness within their own ranks," the hospital said in a statement.

Cranston said the flu vaccine was 91 percent effective in fighting the predominant strain.

"It’s never too late to vaccinate. If you’re not sick, there’s still vaccine available," Cranston said, adding 135 million doses are still available.

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